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Conventional weapons threaten human security. Small arms alone kill an estimated half a million people each year. Indiscriminate weapons such as cluster bombs and landmines kill and injure thousands more and contaminate the land, endangering people even after conflicts end.
Since September 11, 2001 the U.S. government has increased military assistance to secure the cooperation of other governments with its counterterrorism agenda. In many cases, the governments receiving the weapons and training have committed egregious human rights violations.
FCNL informs Congress and the general public about the short- and long-term dangers posed by the use and transfer of weapons and lobbies Congress to exercise greater resonsibility.
Find Out More
Cluster Bomb Exports Banned for One Year!
(c) Alexandre Carle
Great news! A budget bill signed into law just after Christmas included a one-year ban on cluster bomb exports.
You deserve a lot of credit! Your letters, phone calls, and other communication with Congress helped ensure that it included this language in the final version of the bill.
But there’s still more to be done! The measure is only temporary, set to expire in October 2008. Read more about the export ban.
Learn more about cluster bombs.
F-16 Sale to Pakistan Four Days after Bhutto Assassination
On New Year’s Eve, four days after Benazir Bhutto was assassinated, the Pentagon announced that it had advanced an arms deal it was managing for the military of Pakistan by signing a $500 million contract with Lockheed Martin for the purchase of 16 F-16 fighter-bomber jets.
The decision to move forward with this sale at this time begs the question: If coups, nuclear proliferation, suspension of democratic institutions, allegations of involvement in the assassination of a political rival, and chaos in the streets do not merit a cutoff of military assistance, what would?
Read more and ask Congress to hold hearings.
U.S. Arms Both Sides of Mexico’s Drug War
The Washington Post reports that Mexican drug cartels are armed “100 percent” by U.S. weapons smuggled across the border, a process that has intensified following the failure of the United States in 2004 to renew the assault weapons ban. The news report comes one week after the Bush administration requested $500 million for the Mexican military to combat drug cartels in the coming year.
Learn more about U.S. arms sales.
Reviewed:
05/15/2008
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